Really, it has... the show will more than likely be its usual success but I do have to say that the majority of this years contestants I simply have no idea who they are.. and feel that they are undermined by the fact that the dancers seem to have more celebrity value than the so called celebs.

The BBC really do seem to have ITV-envy and have made changes for changes sake without understanding that SCD is a completely different animal of a show.

Only time will tell if the public feel they have made mistakes in both casting and judge changes..

I used to be of the same opinion - bigger names mean bigger more interesting personalities.

But it doesn't always work out that way.

Joe is quite a big name but he seems to be devoid of any personality.

Chris Hollins, by contrast, is less well known but he came across as very likeable and funny.

I wasn't all that familiar with Alesha Dixon prior to her appearance on Strictly - and what a warm and wonderful character she turned out to be?

So I no longer care how famous the celebrities are because quite often the more obscure ones end up having the best personalities.

As my interests are very small in life I don't think I've ever really known any of the celebs on Strictly. I knew James Martin as I have an interest in cooking and some of the cricketers I might have known through my friends obsession with the sport (though I love Tuffers on his own merits ). but quite a lot of the rest I've never heard of.

And most of them I ended up loving. So for me how famous the celeb is means very little. Though I'm constantly getting myself into conversations now with people I work with about this celeb and that celeb... And I have no idea who they are so even if we had a 'big' name there unless they were a driver or Italian I probably wouldn't have a clue who they were anyway .

What's your evidence that the dancers are more famous....that doesn't sound plausible to me...and exactly how many of the contestants do you 'simply have no idea who they are'?

FWIW I don't watch soaps / soapy dramas so usually I know those types only vaguely by sight if at all. This year at least I knew who all of them were...which is not usually the case. On the other hand, I take a reasonable amount of interest in sport so it's very rare that I don't know something about contestants in that category...and this year is no exception. TV presenters...again it's unusual that I don't know them even if I don't watch their shows. The only one 'nobody' from my perspective was Jo Wood.

The BBC don't seem to have ITV envy and at this point I can think of no good reason why they should.

You and me both. I only really knew Martina!
But it that because I don't watch daytime tv and soaps?
Its an honest question, because I genuinely would not know who the others are....

My own personal view is that the Celebs are the important "hook' that gets the viewer interested in the show early on and therefore more than likely to stick with it. If you are faced with the lower end of celebrity as this series is, then you are more than likely going to lose viewers as a result.

SCD should have done away with the whole celebrity concept and elected instead to chose ordinary people with earlier judging rounds.

no because they have done that type of thing before people like celebrities not normal people for some reason they like to see people that they are familiar with

It`s usually the case that not all of the celebs are well known. Like Sid I had no idea who Alesha was, nor did I know Matt DiA or Gethin Jones .

I would think the most famous ones this year are Joe, Phil and Martina Hingis?

But I think the point is, a celebrity's level of fame is subjective depending on what a viewer's interests are.

If you don't happen to be interested in sport, then you're unlikely to be familiar with Joe or Martina.

If you don't watch the soaps, then Natalie and Craig would be non-entities to you.

I like this year's mix myself.

Well, first of all I'd very much contest that the dancers are more famous than the celebs - there's a couple whose names I didn't know, but once I'd seen their faces I knew who all of them were (except Jo. Am I meant to know her, though?).

Secondly - has it ever really mattered how famous the contestants are or aren't? It certainly hasn't for me. Sometimes, people who you don't know beforehand at all can really grow on you - and the ones you do know are out by week three!

I had no idea who the two lads were either! But it was interesting getting to know them.

I haven't a clue who Jo Wood is. But she seems utterly bonkers and I'm excited to see her perform next week!

Except that your first statement is now out of step with your second statement (and that first statement really is the crucial thing). What could be anything less than the lower end of celebrity than "ordinary people"? In truth, you would end up with no "ordinary" people at all (ordinary as in the people that we know and meet day to day). They would all end up being chosen for some quirky personality, some odd character trait, or some element of outspokenness. You only have to look at how Come Dine With Me has developed on C4 to see that "ordinary" people are quite boring to watch, and unattractive to get involved with, and that the producers need to retain interest by spicing things up.

Lol nor me - don`t know why but I feel we`ll be seeing a meltdown coming from her sometime ......

So do I, however, I disagree about Craig, to me he will always be Vince from Queer as Folk. Never seen him in Corrie, so not sure if he is a major character in that, but I think most people would think Queer as folk before Corrie, wouldn't they ? Or is that just me

Oh and me looby!

I don't watch the soaps either, but I was a huge fan of QAF (have even dug the CDs associated with the program out and listened to them today!).

That's where I remember Craig from. Can you believe that series is 10 years old?

You're just trying to make me feel old now !

I love the music too - and I just got rid of my video of it ( as no longer have a video player) and am about to buy on DVD. Can't wait to watch it again. Can't believe it was 10 years ago.

I'd heard of all of them. I've never watched a programme that Ali, Laila or Zoe acted in but I still knew of them. It's stretching it to call Jo Wood a celeb, but I guess she's in the same category as Penny Lancaster.
Big names do draw people in but I think Strictly has become such a hit that people just watch it now regardless of who's in it.

I was re-watching the group dance and she's going to be terrible and by that I mean Fiona Phillips terrible

You can't watch sitcoms, whodunnits and cop series, general TV drama, dramatisations of classic novels or Oxo ads.

Ok, I do remember Linda in the oxo ads!
Have any of them been in Wire in the Blood, Lewis, Pride and Prejudice(the good one!), Whitechapel, Spooks, Dr Who, Waking the Dead or Afterlife? And to be fair, I am not that great at faces!
Those are pretty much the only shows I watch/have watched on terrestrial tv. (well, apart from the x factor and big brother....)

This is my first year watching Strictly, having been persuaded into it by the lovely folks on the BB and other forums, and I have thoroughly enjoyed it so far...

Looking forward to more...

You are completely right! A big part of the pleasure of the programme is 'getting to know' the celebrities and it's nice, really, not to have preconceived ideas of what they'll be like, but just to let them show us what they're about and what they can do.

Its very simple - we see the same dancers (nearly) every (or at least MOST" series. The Slebs are only on for 1 series.

JJ

I knew all of them this year apart from Jade & Craig, and for those who I don't know too much of, I think thats good because this show will give me an opputunity to see what there like, especially Hollins, gone from thinking hmm the new dom littlewood to wow he is really giving it a go!